Crossroad
by Celedone
Summary: It all started with some few minor incidents... But when the things that should have been kept occult are brought to light and those whose paths should never cross meet there's only one question that really matters... and that is: Why?
1. Chapter 1

**\\Prologue: Greek**

That monster would no longer walk on earth, terrifying young demigods. At least, not for a while.

He raised his sword. A smile played on his lips. He couldn't help but feel the adrenaline of the battle take over him, giving him the pleasure of victory, of conquest, of mission accomplished. He _was_ a hero after all, whether people recognized that or not.

He saw the monster shrink by his smile, and for a second the thought that _this_ – the fact that even _monsters _were afraid of him - might be depressing crossed his mind. But it was just for a second and, in the end, that didn't really matter, right? What mattered was that he had it on a corner, with nowhere to run.

The monster – a ginger hairy monkey-man who seemed to be known as one of the _Nesioi Satyrs _– screamed mutely and with a last effort charged.

Nico evaded easily from his attack and still with a smile on his face aimed his black Stygian sword for the monster's heart. Yet, strangely as it may be, he missed. The sword cut through the air, reaching nothing. By the time the demigod turned to give a better look for his prey, he realized there was something _really _wrong going on.

The evil satyr had simply disappeared.

Nico didn't let his guard down though. He looked around, trying to figure out what had happened, wondering how it had managed to escape. He knew it might be hidden somewhere, ready to attack if it was the case. But _how _was the question that he couldn't find the answer for.

He turned to the entrance of the alley he was in and felt surprised to see a girl staring at him. She should be of his age – about fourteen. Her glossy dark hair was straight and peaked and her skin tone was of coffee with a lot of milk. But what caught his attention the most were her eyes. Not because of their amber tone, nor because they were so absolutely serious – though it kind of helped. It was the disapproval on them that made him flinch for a moment… that and her most unexpected words.

"You won't find your prey, if that's what you're looking for." He recognized a strange accent that was quite familiar somehow.

"Uh… I'm sorry, what are you saying?"

"The monkey-man. You won't find him."

Nico felt lost, wondering how to reply to something like this. Yet he still didn't let his guard down. Monsters loved to disguise themselves as little girls, after all.

"What did you do to him?" he finally decided to ask.

"I hid him. So that you won't kill him." She raised her arms as if trying to encompass the whole city with them. "This is a jungle after all. A concrete jungle. And you were the hunter, and he was the prey." She added as if it explained everything.

Nico felt a click inside his mind. He cursed himself, wondering how he could be so stupid not noticing. Then he asked:

"Are you Mexican?"

The girl hesitated, observing him as if he was nuts.

"I mean, your accent. It sounds Mexican."

"Just because my accent is Latin-American doesn't mean I'm Mexican!" The girl scolded him, sounding very offended. Then she turned and left.

"What the Hades was that?" Nico murmured to himself as he sheathed his sword and shadow travelled back to San Francisco. Yet, he soon forgot about the whole thing. After all, it was just another "weird thing of the everyday life" for his collection – and what a collection he had. So he just let it slip away from his mind. He probably would never see the girl again, anyway.

Of course he was wrong. And _of course _their reunion just _had _to be the most unpleasant way possible and followed by the most undesirable events there could have been. He was a demigod, after all. And what is a demigod without some real hard time to worry about?


	2. Chapter 2

**\\Egyptian**

After the whole end of the world deal, with a giant serpent eating the sun and all that stuff, Sadie and Carter had thought that they could finally live happily ever after, with no other worries than to finish school, take care of their Nome and afterwards, when the time came, to rule the Egyptian world to glory and peace.

But _no_, things cannot be that simple.

The first to notice things had started to go wrong all over again was Sadie. And it wasn't really when she saw that she was being followed by huge one-eyed people, nor when she noticed some feathery winged serpents trying to hide from her sight – though these evidences _should_ have made her think that there was something weird going on.

But, well, she is Sadie Kane, and it wouldn't be a couple of demons that would startle her – especially not those that wouldn't even try killing her.

At least that was until her _ba_ decided to take a flight.

First, she could see nothing but darkness - a deep, swallowing darkness. It was unpleasant, suffocating, giving her a claustrophobia she'd never had. She felt relieved to see a dim light spreading slowly yet constantly, giving her an idea of the depth of the place she was.

The first thing Sadie noticed as she saw her surroundings getting color, shape and texture was that she was underground. The walls were nowhere to be seen, such was the extension of the place. Yet, every now and then there was a pillar of what seemed to be a mixture of rock, clay and twisting roots of what seemed to be giant trees.

The next thing she saw was the woman.

The tone of her skin was tanned, like coffee with milk. Her body was slim, skinny, in a gracious way. Her calm and reflexive eyes were amber, with a shape that reminded Sadie of Pocahontas, and her dark hair was long and luxurious. She wore a simple beige dress which seemed somewhat handmade and by her neck hung a few beads' necklaces.

She was beautiful yet odd, as if she lived in another time, in a different environment, with other kind of people… As if she didn't _belong._

Sadie had been contemplating the woman for a while, wishing she could solve her, understand that calm and distant expression, learn what was behind those enigmatically simple eyes. That was when the deep voice of a woman invaded her mind, echoing straight through her soul.

"_WATCH HER, SADIE KANE - WATCH HER WELL - FOR THIS IS THE WOMAN WHO WILL BRING TRAGEDY AND MISERY TO YOUR LIFE AGAIN_"

Sadie felt the despair surge from inside, like a giant and violent wave that couldn't be contended – like a tsunami. She wanted to scream, to take that intruder out of her mind, to make the feeling that her _ba_ was being burned go away. She probably closed her eyes for just a second. But when she opened the woman was gone. The underworld was gone.

All that was left to see was the Statue of Liberty cracking up by the waves – being crushed and swallowed by an uncontrollable swirl of water, sinking like a paper boat in a tsunami.

When Sadie woke up she was screaming.

* * *

It was a rainy day when all the disgrace started to happen. The clouds were heavy, of the color of lead, and the air was humid and dense, almost hard to inhale. The drops that poured from the gloomy sky, however, were too thin and smooth to promise the horrible weather to go away any time soon.

It is so understandable why Carter _definitely _didn't want to leave the Brooklyn House. What wasn't understandable was Sadie's resistance to his leave.

"Sadie, it's alright." He'd said to her incomprehensible apprehension.

"You can't know! You can get a flu, you can meet a kidnapper, a murderer, I don't know!" she paused, suddenly realizing the absurd of what she'd just said. That was definitely Sadie not being Sadie.

"Ok, what have you done to my sister?"

She inhaled deeply, trying to make sure she'd sound reasonable this time.

"Listen, Carter, I have my reasons for wanting you not to go out. I… I can't tell you right now. But _please_ listen to me."

"Sadie, I'm just going to the drugstore on the corner." He placed his hand on her shoulder while shaking his head. "Really what's up with you these days? I mean, _I'm _supposed to be the worried responsible brother, right?"

She bit her lower lip, struggling against her feelings.

"Fine then. But if you get killed, I swear I will get you back to life just to kill you again, understand?" before he could reply to that, Sadie turned and left.

"Seems you made her mad, man" Walt observed his stormy girlfriend with worry.

"Well, that's not a very difficult task, is it?"

Walt smiled, but his eyes still showed concern.

"She's been acting weird lately."

Carter nodded, feeling suddenly tired.

"Yes, she has. Do you have any idea of what it could be? Didn't she tell you anything?"

"No… I've been trying to talk to her, but she… well, she always finds a way to distract me."

Carter smiled to his embarrassment. "Well, try again. You know she can't keep her mouth shut for very long. That's not quite her specialty", and with that he left.

If the day seemed unpleasant from the inside, from the outside it felt somewhat refreshing. Carter hadn't realized how badly he needed a time for himself up until then. Sure he loved being with the kids from Brooklyn House, and teaching had proven to be an amusing activity, after all. Yet, he was always surrounded by loud kids with a lot of energy to spend and he suddenly felt that he had the weight of the world over his shoulders.

The streets were calm, almost empty. It wasn't cold, but still the rain discouraged almost everyone from going out. His footsteps echoed quietly and the cold water drops touched gently his skin. As he walked, he felt his head getting lighter and his thoughts clearer. By the time he got to the drugstore, he felt even disappointed that it wasn't further away.

He had just forgotten about Sadie's strange behavior when a deep hoarse voice coming from behind him emerged.

"We're closed."

Carter almost jumped back, his hand instantly reaching for the _khopesh_ that was hidden under his coat. As he turned he saw a muscular dark skinned man, about double of his size and dark, piercing eyes.

Carter pointed with his head to the glass door from which he'd come in.

"That's not what the sign says."

The man stared at him for some moments, as if trying to decide whether to ask him politely to leave or to kick him off.

"Listen, kid, if I were you I would leave before-" he got interrupted by a scrawny little guy with the skin as dark as the first man's.

"Heeey, looks like we have another costumer!" he rubbed his hands with very good mood, his large smile kind and welcoming. "Jack, you have to welcome well our clients, or else they will run away from us!" the man winked with a look of amusement on his face.

"I'm sorry, Masi." He said, though he didn't look sorry at all.

"So what is for you, buddy?" still smiling, the man who seemed to be called Masi turned towards Carter.

"I need some Sudafed... let me see…" he paused to think for a while "Four is enough."

"Are you gonna open a drugstore on your own, kiddo?" he laughed of his own joke, and as he laughed the warmth of his manners made their effect on Carter. For a moment, a bad thought crossed his mind, as he remembered a book by Stephen King he'd read. A flash of Sadie's angry supplicant eyes went through his head and he almost shuddered.

But it should be alright, shouldn't it? What could go wrong? In any case, Carter had a khopesh with him, though he doubted he would need it against the skinny guy in front of him.

Masi told him to wait for a while and entered the same door he'd come from. Carter laid himself by the counter, ready to wait as much time as it took. After all, he was actually enjoying being on his own for a while. He glanced absently through the dirty showcase, observing as the rain got thicker.

That was the last thing he remembered before something hit his head and everything went dark.

* * *

_So... what do you think?_

_Please, review! :D_


	3. Chapter 3

**\\Greek**

He had thought that the two men arguing quietly looked weird, but he'd decided it was none of his business. So he just observed by the corner of his eyes as they talked, men so different from each other that people seemed to make an extra effort not to notice. One was short, scrawny, with thinning hair and a fragile, hesitant expression on his face. The other was a business man, dressed with a black suit. His face transmitted severity, harshness, and his deep black eyes were piercing and menacing. They talked at each other in whispers, the business man shaking his head negatively as the other man gesticulated nervously.

Nico didn't know why exactly the discussion bothered him; it was almost as if he had developed an instinctive radar for trouble, though he still wasn't sure _what kind_ of trouble.

Or perhaps he was just being paranoid, which was _very _likely, considering the last few months.

When he grabbed his Happy Meal on the counter and decided to leave, his mind wasn't focused on what was going on in front of him, but what was behind. As he passed through the sliding doors, Nico's attention was drawn back as he bumped into someone.

"I'm sorry." He said. Yet, as he gave the person a better look, he froze. "You!"

It was the girl who had apparently interrupted his fight. Her eyes, which were irritated before, opened widely as she recognized him. She cursed in some other language and then, in an angry tone of voice, asked:

"Are you going to stand there all day staring at me or you'll let me in?"

"Oh no, I'd actually love to talk to you about that monster you protected." He grabbed her arm gently yet firmly and pushed her away from the fast food restaurant. Her eyes glinted indignantly and she opened her mouth to protest.

That was when everything behind him exploded.

The glasses all shattered at once as the violent flames spread in the restaurant. Their pieces fell over them as they fell, impulse by the strength of the explosion. Nico felt his head hit the concrete of the street and a strange warmth spread around the side of his forehead. Yet his reflexes were accelerated by the adrenaline and he just _couldn't _stay still. He stood up precariously, feeling his head strangely light.

"NO!" the monster friendly girl screamed with a mix of deep desperation, anger and hopelessness on her voice. He saw as her eyes filled with tears, though none was shed.

Then a strange silhouette appeared against a shattered window; it was a long thin body, with a long thin tail attached. Nico heard behind all the noise a small delighted laughter and his blood ran faster as his anger rose. Yet, before he could go after the weird silhouette, it simply vanished, leaving behind red flames and a smell of toasted meat.

* * *

"We gotta go", he'd said to her, his eyes still focused on the place the monster had stood. She didn't move, paralyzed as she was, her fragility more intensified by the pained agony on her expression.

He didn't seem irritated, though. Instead, the boy grabbed her by the arm, pulling her gently from the ground. She clung up to him without even realizing, almost not even hearing when he'd said "Don't worry. I'm gonna take you to somewhere safe."

And then there was she, in the abandoned house smelling of mold and decay, staring at nowhere as she passed through her mind again and again what had happened, trying to find a solution. And failing. And trying again. And failing again in an infinite loop that would only reaffirm her own misery.

He didn't try to talk, at first. Not because he didn't know what to say, but because he hadn't decided what to ask first. Nico could see the deep hopelessness she'd immersed herself into; yet, he knew that letting her dwell on it would only make things worse.

"So… I understand that you must be shocked and all. And there's nothing I can actually say to make things better. But isn't there anyone who I can call to? Someone you'd like to be with you right now?"

She stood still for another five minutes, as if she hadn't heard any of his words. Then, all in a sudden, she just shook her head, passing her hands on her eyes.

"I… I'm sorry." She said, her voice steadier then he'd imagined it would be. "I needed a time to think." Her eyes met his, and he suddenly realized it wasn't amber. It was copper. Slight difference, especially in the light.

"Yeah, sure. It's alright." He managed to smile, though he knew by experience his smile was not the most encouraging of the world. Not by far.

"So… what is your name?" she asked at the same time she rummaged in her small leather purse for something.

"It's Nico. You?"

"Ana." She pulled a dark string, probably hand-made, and then removed the hair from her eyes. The girl still looked upset, disturbed, but seemed to be doing her best to hold on. Her hands started working fast, as if they had life of their own, grabbing dark beads from inside the purse and assembling them in what could be a necklace or a bracelet. Every now and then, she took one of the beads that looked just like the others, pursed her lips and threw it back to her purse.

Nico didn't understand why exactly she was doing that; all he knew was that it seemed to slowly calm her down, taking that horrified look off her face. He'd been observing her mindfully, her precise manners, the strange cadence of her movements, even the weird clothes she'd been wearing. In fact, he barely noticed the feel of a mosquito bite on his arm. He was too busy thinking. He had looked into her eyes, he had seen a range of her expressions, and all that put together told him she was not built for battle – most definitely not.

Yet she knew of the existence of monsters and they probably knew of her either. So the question that arose on his mind was: How?

"It's finished." She handed him a bracelet made of black beads.

"Uh, thanks a lot, but I don't wear these things", he replied awkwardly, hesitant whether he should take it or not.

"I can see you don't", was her answer, "but you can always keep it inside your pocket. It is my thanks because you saved my life." Her eyes had turned dense and piercing. "Besides, it might come to be handy some time. You will see."

He hesitantly took his gift, analyzing it as if to show some respect to her creation. She _had _done it fast, and she _had _done it well, all considered. But, well, it was just not his style.

"So… Ana. Why did you save that monster the other day? He could have done the same as the one from today, you know."

Ana observed the ceiling for a while, as if trying to decide whether to speak or not.

"I'm sorry. Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand." Her eyes were still focused above them as she spoke, yet still Nico could see her eyes lighten up with a sliver of hope. She abruptly turned to him, analyzing him so eagerly he felt no good would ever come out of that. "Nico, how good are you at finding out stuff?"

"What is it that you want?" he narrowed his eyes, looking between suspicious and curious.

"I want to make a deal with you." Ana smiled smoothly, but her eyes were sharp. "Look, I didn't go to the McDonald's just to eat their food. There was another reason for my being there." She paused as if to create some suspense. "There was a man there I was supposed to meet. That man… he was going to give me information. And now he is dead. Probably the attack with the bomb had nothing to do with the man." she waved her hand as if to ward off a fly. "But it still the possibility exists."

"So you want me…?"

"To find the monster for me. But don't kill him. I'd like to talk first." Then she got up precariously, using the wall as a support.

"What do I get with this?" he frowned, not really enjoying the course that the conversation was taking.

"You get all the information that I can give you. And trust me, that's a lot." She winked at him, with no sign of her previous hopelessness.

Nico wanted to get up, to help her out. However, a strange dizziness stopped him, for his head became heavy and the world started to shuffle around him. He touched his arm where he'd felt the mosquito bite, finding a needle stuck in it. He took it away and looked around to ask for Ana's help.

She'd vanished.

He only had time to curse her before he passed out.

* * *

_A/N:_

_Sooooo what do you think? Good, bad? Have any idea of what's going on yet? ;)_

_Anyway, I'm sorry for my bad English (it's not my mother language, after all)._

_Please, review!_


	4. Chapter 4

**\\Egyptian**

When Carter woke up, the first thing he saw was a pair of deep black eyes staring at him.

He jumped, trying to reach the Egyptian sword he hid behind his coat; it wasn't there though. And if that wasn't enough, his hands were tied together behind his back. Well, someone definitely didn't want him to escape.

"Hey, hey, take it easy!" a whispering voice came from nearby. Carter assumed it was from the owner of those dark pair of eyes, who'd disappeared from his sight just as quickly as he had shown up. "Don't worry, I ain't gonna hurt you. Can't say the same about _them_, though…"

Carter looked around him and bitterly realized he was concealed inside a cage. Then as his eyes got used to the reddish dim light of his surroundings, he saw that there were other people there; dark skinned people who seemed as terrified as himself about what was just about to happen. They spoke at each other in whispers, as if waiting for something.

"What is this place?" Carter muttered to himself.

"No idea… My guess is that this is somewhere under the drugstore." The man near him answered. Carter looked around, seeking for the source of the voice.

What he found was an old man, with tired eyes and a wrinkled face that looked calm and wise. He was well dressed, with a dark elegant overcoat and a grey striped scarf. He was as thin as a stick – his arm looked as if it would easily break in two in an arm wrestling.

Carter decided he _definitely_ couldn't count on him to cover his back when he escaped.

"Do you have any idea of what they want with us?"

The old man shook his head negatively, looking tired.

Carter closed his eyes, trying to think straight. He felt the ropes around his wrists, making an effort to figure out a way of getting rid of those things. Yet, even if he _did_ untie himself, what would he do to get away from the cage?

_So you fell straight into the trap_, a voice inside his head echoed half disapprovingly, half sarcastic.

_Shut up_, Carter answered, trying his best not to say anything out loud.

_You sure you don't need my help? Or perhaps the whole pharaoh thing's already got to your head?_

_Just _shut up, _Horus. I need to think, alright? And another voice inside my head is _definitely _not helping._

_Fine, then. _The god replied, his voice assuming a hurt tone. It took much of Carter not to roll his eyes in front of the old man. After all, he couldn't afford that man who could possibly help him in his way out to think he was crazy.

And yet, despite being unbelievably annoying, the short conversation with Horus had given him an idea. He analyzed the bars of his prison, and then looked for the locker. His eyes ran through the room they were being kept into, looking for the keys and his khopesh.

That was when he saw something that made him sigh in relief, feel extremely worried and, most of all, completely annoyed him. For hidden in a corner of the dark room, Sadie lurked, her wand ready in her hand.

* * *

Without warning, and before Carter could do a thing, a door he hadn't noticed before opened, and all attentions were turned toward the man who came in. He was huge – so huge he had to bend almost to the half to pass through the door. His skin was the darkest of them all; in fact, Carter didn't believe he'd ever seen a man with a skin darker than his in his whole life. It seemed to absorb all the clarity, all the light in the ambience and together with his size the impression given was that he filled the whole room, leaving Carter with a claustrophobic feeling.

Yet the most curious thing about the man was not his size, but his one eye. And it wasn't as fi he was a one-eyed man with a patch in the place where his other eye should've been. It would certainly be less disturbing if it was the case. But no, things just couldn't be so simple.

For his one eye was exactly in the middle of the man's forehead, staring straight to Carter.

He gulped as the monster approached, observing him carefully. Carter fought the urgency to run away, knowing that if he did so the old man next to him would be in trouble.

"So, Carter Kane, isn't it so?" the one-eyed man grinned at him, his eyes glittering with pleasure. "I was told I might get your visit any day. Perhaps I should invite you to banquet with us, such an important visitor." He was solemn for a moment and Carter almost believed in his words. Then the huge guy looked around to the men staring at them and burst into laugh.

People around him followed his act by giggling nervously, just like in those blockbuster movies where the villain was as stupid as a door and his minions just followed his steps for not being toasted to death – or anything like it.

"I'm sorry, man, but I didn't quite understand the joke." He spoke as naively and bluntly as he could, trying to buy some time for Sadie to create a plan.

All the laughter abruptly stopped. People around him shivered, looking terrified. The monster in front of him observed him quietly with his one eye for a moment, and then his lips curved into an evil smile.

"Do you see that oven on the corner, over there?" He pointed with his head, still with his eye on Carter. His tone of voice was deep and slow, almost lecturing. "That's where you'll spend the rest of the evening, boy. And then, _here_." And he massaged his protruding belly, smiling delightedly.

There was a moment of deep silence. Then, unexpectedly a loud noise of metal hitting the ground echoed in the room. Carter felt all human breaths being held all at the same time, as the tyrant turned to see what had caused the noise.

Sadie was crouching on the floor, her hand extended to take a frying pan the size of her torso, her face comically frozen in an expression of "I-just-screwed-it".

"Oops", she said.

The giant man didn't think twice and charged toward her. Carter took the moment to change; he felt his body shrink and his desire for eating rats increase. His vision became sharper and the ropes around his wrists got loosened and then fell.

The old man next to him gaped in silence, his eyes wide open in utter surprise.

Carter took an impulse and threw himself in the gap between two metal bars of his cage. He opened then his wings to float and passed quickly by the one-eyed guy's side, being careful not to get hit by his huge clumsy arms.

The frying pan flew to the guy's torso, which only made him hesitate and smile.

"So _you _must be Sadie Kane. I was wondering if you'd never show up." His voice had changed disturbingly, turning identical to Carter's. "Don't worry, kiddo, I ain't gonna hurt you."

Sadie observed him as if a strange paradox had just shown up in front of her and she just couldn't decide what to do. Carter took the opportunity to attack, grabbing the face of his captor with both his sharp claws.

The man screamed, furiously. Suddenly, there were brown feathers everywhere, spreading as they struggled, one to free himself, the other not to get thrown away. Carter felt his blood speed up inside his body and his head get dizzy as the "man" shook himself desperately. He knew he had few time, and he wouldn't get a better chance any time soon. He felt a huge hand grab him by the tail, yet he still didn't let go. He was _almost _in the perfect position…

Then there was it. Carter saw the moment of comprehension in the single eye and a glimpse of fear come out of this. Yet he didn't have time for mercy; not when he was going to be cooked for dinner. He aimed his beak straight to the big, round eyeball. He hit it.

The roar that came next was certainly the most painful Carter had ever listened to. For it wasn't only of physical pain – there was frustration, deep hatred, excruciating agony. Carter's claws lost the grip just then and he was thrown away, hitting the wall and falling unconsciously to the floor.

An explosion of curses, roars followed and the huge fists that broke just about anything in front of it. Sadie went toward his brother, collecting him from the ground. She thanked mutely for the fact he was still in his falcon form. Then, remembering the old man in carter's cell, she ran toward it.

She was surprised to find the door open and even smiled for a moment as she found a picklock near the door.

Then she silently climbed the stairs she'd come from, hoping none of the minions would follow her. The monster inside cried furiously, but she could only hear fragments which sounded as "I'm going to kill you" and "Eat you alive". Some really happy stuff.

She was back in the store grounds when she saw a muscular dark-skinned man standing by the glass door along with the old man. The latter smiled, looking impressively in a good mood.

"So you kids are alright, after all."

Sadie hesitated, observing the other man carefully. She knew him to be one of the minions of the crazed guy underground – she'd seen him before. Yet he didn't look mean at all; instead, a guilty expression filled his face.

"I'm sorry for all this." He said as she passed by him with suspicion on her face.

"So am I", she replied, angrily.

"We'll try to deal with him now. But there's no guarantee we'll manage to do so." He shrugged.

Then a desperate voice downstairs called desperately: "Jack! Where are you?"

"Well, I gotta go." He hurried down there, where the smashing and screaming sounds only got louder. Sadie stood there, observing the dark hole that was the door which led to the monster and for a moment she wondered if they hadn't made the lives of those people even worse.

Then she shook her head and carried her falcon-brother back to their home.

* * *

_A/N:_

_Again, what do you think? :) Good, bad, needs improvement? I know it's confusing by now, but hopefully things will get cleared up soon._

_So please review! I'll try updating as soon as I can._

_Also, thanks for those who have reviewed so far :D I really appreciate that!_


	5. Chapter 5

**\\Greek**

He had decided one thousand times he wouldn't help her. And yet, for one thousand times his curiosity broke his will and he decided he _would_ help, after all. He stayed in this impasse for three days, walking from one side of the room to the other, until the rotten carpet of the abandoned house got torn and he realized that thinking that much without doing anything wouldn't do him any good.

So he went to one of his favorite places to be in the world, a cemetery, and took his favorite food, Happy Meals, with him.

He hesitated for another moment as his skeletons worked on the pit he needed for invoking the ghosts. After all, how could he know she was not just using him for her own purposes, manipulating and lying for her own hands not to get dirty? She had already poisoned him one, making him sleep as she got away. There was absolutely no insurance she wouldn't do the same thing again, except this time in a deadly way…

Then he shook his head, knowing that these thoughts would lead him to nowhere. If a demigod could have two fatal flaws, Nico knew his second would definitely be his curiosity, his hunger for knowing the truth.

So he let the skeletons dig, and he poured food and drinks to the dead. And when they appeared shimmering in front of him, the dead eyes staring at nothing, he made his questions.

What he found out, after all, was interesting.

"_Sabaktes_", he tasted the name, just wondering. What would a pottery daemon get by destroying a fast food restaurant? Would he really be after the girl, Ana? "_Sabaktes_, the Destroyer", he repeated to himself as he looked absently at the dark pit where the ghosts had come from.

None of them knew anything about Ana, which was odd, since the ghosts are worse at gossiping about the living than high school girls. Yet, there was something else. Something that might be related to all the destruction that had happened.

He got up, thinking about how to find the daemon and how to make him talk. Nico knew it would be dangerous – the Destroyer seemed to enjoy the wonders of the new technology that allowed him to explode everything instead of just breaking and smashing. He sighed as he left the cemetery, wondering why things couldn't be simpler. He didn't want to be a hero, after all. He didn't want to be involved in all that mess. Of course that once he saw himself into it, there was nothing to do but to help. In fact, all he wanted was to live peacefully, freely, wandering from cemetery to cemetery, listening to the ghosts' stories and tales.

When he got to the abandoned house where he had stayed the last few days, it felt as if all the weight of the world had been placed over his shoulders. Yet, when he opened the door, soon enough all those thoughts vanished. There was a folded note laid next to the doorway, and it was addressed to him.

Nico felt his survival instincts awaken. He looked around carefully, trying to spot anything unusual. As nothing was found, and he just couldn't stand in the doorway forever, he quickly picked the note from the ground.

He closed the door and headed near an open window in the living room, using the clear night's light to read. He unfolded the note, only to find a handwritten question:

'_Have you found out anything yet? – A.'_, it said. Nico folded it again, feeling sort of angry, and tossed it away in a rotten couch. He passed his hand through his messy hair, closing his eyes for a second.

That was when he heard the noise.

As quickly and as silently a human being can be, he drew his sword from the sheath of his belt. He stood still for a moment, feeling the darkness wrap him up, hiding him from any mortal eye – and from some immortal, too. And he listened… He listened to the deep silence, to the mute stillness that had taken over the entire house.

_Creeeek – _he heard it again, a sound of a rusty metal spring complaining about the weight over it.

Nico headed to the nearest bedroom, hoping his steps would be soft enough for the wooden floor not to creak. As he got to the door, he heard the sound again, this time louder. The sword kept ready in one hand, he quickly opened the door, ready to attack if he needed to. Yet what he found made his eyes flare with anger for a moment.

"Hi, Nico. So, what's your answer?"

He lowered his sword, without letting his guard down.

"Why did you leave a note if you were here to talk?" he said harshly. He _definitely _didn't like going through a tense moment for nothing.

"I thought you would like to have the upper hand on the situation, considering what happened last time we met." She shrugged, and then smiled. Nico observed her for a moment, wondering for the thousandth time whether he could trust her or not. As he didn't look inclined to answer Ana sighed and added. "Look, I'm sorry for that day. I really didn't see that coming. It's just that my brother thought that I might be in danger. And he is, as you must have noticed, a little… overprotective. Now, why don't you just sit down here to talk? Looking at you standing there is getting me nervous."

Nico hesitantly sat in a chair nearby, his sword laid on his lap and his hand over its hilt.

"I found out two things that might interest you." He said, observing her expression carefully. "One is who the monster that attacked the McDonald's is. It is a daemon and as most daemons it probably lives in the Underworld, though there's not much information about him. The other thing is a rumor that I heard. It's about a woman-" at this, her eyes glimmered slightly and her body tensed "-who seems to be trapped in the Underworld."

"So all the paths lead there." She muttered thoughtfully. Then she blinked, as if waking up, and shot him a suspicious glance. "And what made you think that this woman would have to do with me?"

This time he was the one who smiled, though his smile was dry and humorless.

"Why should I tell you? All you've done until now was to tell me what to do, to put me to sleep in the most unpleasant way and to show up demanding answers. Let's just say you're not my favorite person at this moment and I'm not really sure if I can really trust you, after all."

Ana bit her lower lip, her copper eyes darkening dangerously. She considered his words for some moments, trying to find the appropriate answer. When she spoke again, her voice was heavy of anger and despair.

"Ok, then. You have your reasons for not liking me, for not trusting me, and I understand. I told you before, I'm sorry for what happened. Still, there's nothing I can do to change what's already happened. But now, _please_, try placing yourself in my place. I am in a country that is not mine, I know no one here except my own brother and _she _is missing and I can't figure out how to get her back. And if _that _wasn't enough, the only person I knewthat might help me is now _dead._" She took a deep breath, her hands now closed in fists, her lips pressed tight.

Nico almost felt sorry for the girl – in fact, he would have definitely decided to help her right away if he knew he could trust her. But it wasn't the case, and all that could've been just acting. Great acting, but still – acting.

And yet, they were in an impasse – she wouldn't tell him anything if he didn't say what he knew about the woman; he wouldn't tell her about the woman as long as she kept him in the dark.

Nico sighed, suddenly remembering Hestia's words. They weren't meant for him, that time, but still served him well at that moment. He didn't remember her exact words, but he _did _remember that there was something to do with the power of yielding. Or anything like it.

"So, the woman." He spoke slowly, trying to find the best words, to measure the information he was about to give. Ana didn't move, but he still he could feel he'd caught her interest. "The first thing that got my attention was the woman's description. I'm not going to enter into details, but let's say that the way she was described she would look very much like you. Of course, it could have been a coincidence." _Not that I actually believe in coincidences_, he thought to himself. "So I asked my… _informers… _if they knew anything about the woman. And they said they didn't know much, except that once she was seen sending a message to a man. A business man, it appeared. And, in fact, it _seemed _that her methods involved some sort of obscure kind of magic." This time the girl raised her head, observing him carefully with those sharp copper eyes. "And there was a third thing", he continued, leading his left hand automatically to his jeans pocket, "the woman, as they told me, sometimes looked very upset about something. And when she did, she grabbed beads from her purse and made these." He glanced at her seed necklace, pointing at it with his head to emphasize the message. He could've added that none of those evidences were quite solid, that it wouldn't prove anything – but he decided to wait for her reaction instead.

Ana sighed, passing her hand by her hair. Nico couldn't decide whether she was satisfied by his answer or not. That was until she replied:

"Well, it seems we don't need our demon friend to help us anymore." Then she gazed at him, thoughtfully. "But I'm curious: where did you get all that information? How can you have so many informers in the place this woman is being kept captive?"

Then he shot her a reproachful look and she reconsidered her questions.

"Fine, answers first, right? How can I explain…" she muttered, taking a pause to think.

Before she could think of anything, though, a deep loud rumble came from the underground. Ana looked at Nico, her eyes asking for an explanation. The ground trembled violently, making them lose balance.

A crack tore the house apart, and the earth beneath it gained life. For the first time in his life, Nico was scared of going to his father's domains. But as the ground sucked him in and the darkness engulfed him, he realized he didn't really have much choice but to go.

* * *

_A/N:_

_Ok, so things are starting to happen. I hope it is not as confusing as I think it is… anyway, things _should_ get cleared up soon enough (I don't know, this story kind of has a life on its own)._

_Again, I'm sorry for my bad English (and I'm glad that some people don't seem to find it so bad)._

_Please review :) (because then I'll update sooner!)_


	6. Chapter 6

**\\Egyptian**

"This is strange", Cleo said. "Why do you want to know about it?"

Sadie and Carter glanced at each other, not sure if they should tell her already. Cleo sighed.

"The description of the leader… It was a _Cyclops_. Cyclopes are one-eyed Giants who were said to live in caves. In the myths, they could be good or bad, helping the gods or trying to kill the heroes." She hesitated. "I don't know how much details you want. Or why you want to know about Greek mythology, anyway."

"Just curiosity. We just read something about it somewhere and we couldn't quite remember. Carter thought that the leader was some sort of Egyptian monster that had to do with fish in Scandinavia. Wasn't it?"

He grumbled something in response, but Cleo wasn't listening anymore. It seemed she'd found something in an old dusty book with its yellow pages coming loose. Her eyes passed quickly from one line to another and then she stopped, considering what she'd read.

"Here says that it was believed that in Africa – more specifically in the Lybian desert – there was a tribe. And here I quote: '_towards the west are the Nigri, whose king is said to have only one eye, in his forehead._' Seems to match what you said."

"Greek?" Was Carter's only question.

"Greek." Cleo answered, calmly. Then she frowned. "But what kind of book did you two read to find this?"

"Oh, when we were kids there was a children book that told some fantastic tales based on myths. Some of them included Egyptian stuff. Carter and I were just discussing from which mythology each of them was. Nothing much." Sadie smiled, wondering if she would believe such an awful lie. "Thanks, Cleo."

Sadie followed her brother to the veranda, thinking of what they'd just found out. Outside, the thin clouds floated smoothly. The air was cool and dry, but not cold. The sunlight was scarce, coming through the clouds every now and then. Overall, it was a fine day, a good day to go out to a park, to lie on the grass and just relax.

Still, she couldn't get rid of the feeling that there was a storm coming, its black imaginary clouds hovering right over them. She stood next to Carter, observing as Philip of Macedonia, the crocodile, swam quietly in his pool.

"You never told me what worried you so much that day." said Carted, his eyes still focused on the horizon.

Sadie frowned, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"I never said I was worried. I just thought you were being stupid, as always."

"C'mon! You were completely _panicking_ there!" he smiled at her sour face.

"No, I _wasn't_. Most _definitely_ not. Perhaps I was _a little bit_ worried. Just one tiny bit, you know, the size of a grain of sand…"

"_Sadie_" he raised one eyebrow.

"…but it was because I had my own reasons, dimwit. You would have been whinging annoyingly for me not to leave here if you'd been having those bloody dreams as well."

"What dreams?"

Sadie hesitated, as if the remembrance disturbed her.

"Just some dreams. It's not important, though. Ever since the drugstore incident, I didn't have any of those anymore."

"But what were they about?" insisted Carter. After all, dreams were never _just dreams_. At least, not for them.

Sadie shrugged.

"Just the same as usual. Y'know, mysterious people menacing to destroy everything and rule the world. That kind of stuff." By the way she was avoiding looking at him, Carter could tell she was already regretting telling him about that. Sadie grimaced and then added: "But as I told you, it should be alright now. The dreams have ceased."

"If you have any of those dreams again, you can tell me. You know it, right? I don't even understand why you haven't said anything until now."

Sadie just grumbled and said nothing.

The silence that followed felt long and dense. Not because of their little discussion, for they were more than used to that. What troubled them most was that metaphorical dark storm that was hovering over them, as Sadie hadn't failed to notice. It was, after all, the shadow of new dark times, of new battles, of new losses and sacrifices.

"Have you ever thought that we may not be the only ones?" Carter broke the silence once again, his face grave by deep reflection.

"Never had much time to consider," Sadie answered. "You know, with the menace of a giant snake eating the sun, and the Apocalypse, and all that stuff."

"Do you remember what Amos said? About Manhattan and the other gods?" Carter ignored her, not without frowning with annoyance.

"And how we're not supposed to go there?" Sadie paused, as if considering, and then smiled with amusement. "Sure I remember. And I also know what we are going to do now."

"Rules are made to be broken, huh?"

"Seems that things _can_ go through this thick head of yours, every now and then, dear brother of mine."

Carter scolded her and they left.

* * *

By the time they got in front of the Empire States Building, the cool air had become chilly and the daylight was almost completely gone.

"What now?" asked Carter, looking up to the high building as if he hoped to find some miraculous answers there.

"Now we get in and ask."

"Wait! Ask what?" Carter observed as his sister stormed into the building. "I guess I'll just wait outside, then." He mumbled to himself. He did promise to himself, however, that he would keep his eyes on his sister, so that he would help her in case she saw herself endangered. And he _did _intend to keep the promise. In fact, he would easily have kept the damn promise – weren't for the terrified kid running for his life and the flying serpents that were chasing him.

Carter took a few seconds to understand what he had seen. It's not every day that you see a kid running in his teddy bear pajamas in the middle of the street, after all. Yet, teddy bear pajamas or not, the boy surely needed to be saved and Carter, glancing over the imposing building once more to assure his sister was alright, couldn't resist but to run after the winged snakes.

Odd thing number one: none of the passers seemed to notice any of what was going on. They would complain, and even yell when bumped at – but they did it as if it was something usual. It was as if they didn't noticed that they were bumped at by feathery green sneaks, with vicious eyes and long fangs.

Odd thing number two: the boy looked back and grinned at him. He hadn't looked scared; he hadn't looked even tired, despite all the running. No. He had looked _amused_.

_Or maybe I'm just seeing things_, thought Carter. There was the sound of brakes, of angry yells and horns as they crossed the street. As they ran, a strange feeling took over him - the feeling that there was something _really _wrong about all of it: the kid in its pajamas and the serpents and the people around him and the shades of red that colored the horizon. It was all wrong. It was all strange and, most of all, it was all part of something he didn't belong.

_I shouldn't be here_, thought he. _I should stop right now, turn around and go back to Brooklyn._

But he couldn't stop anymore. He knew it. He felt it. Even If he wanted, he wouldn't. There was something strange about that part of the city – like a magnet and a repellent, at the same time. Except the magnet was stronger, making him keep running, until he saw the big leafy trees and the benches and the lamp posts and all the rest of the park.

Carter had been in many places in this wide wild world. He'd gone to Egypt, to excavation sites and underground cities; he'd been in Russia, in Switzerland, in Australia and in places with names he could not pronounce. He'd travelled all around the world when his father was alive and, when he died, he travelled a bit more, as he tried saving the world.

He'd been in many places, that's for sure. But the Central Park wasn't one of them.

The first thing he noticed about the place was the green – there's not much green to see in the rest of the city, after all. He even wished he would've come under better circumstances and he even added a mental note for him to take the kids of the Brooklyn House for a picnic there.

"_CARTER! Stop right there, dimwit!_" the shouts were the second thing he noticed. He looked back to where he'd come from, spotting his sister running towards him as fast as she could. He waited nervously, glancing to the path the kid and the monsters had taken. He wondered if they wouldn't get there too late. Still, better to have someone by his side, in case anything went wrong – they were Kanes, after all, and things _always _went wrong.

When Sadie reached him, the first thing she did was to smack him.

"_Ow!_ _Why'd you do that?_"

"For you to learn not to leave me behind, idiot." She made a pause to catch her breath. "So, why are we running, anyway?"

"There are monster after a kid. And I'm not sure if they are _Egyptian_."

They restarted running, going by the path Carter pointed out.

"Y'know, Carter, I have this feeling-"

"So you _do _have feelings? That's new for me." he interrupted her, grinning widely.

"Just shut up, Carter." She glared at him. "But you know, I feel that there is something _really _wrong about this." Sadie frowned, looking worried.

Then they stopped. There was a crossroad ahead of them and no sign of the monsters or of the boy.

"So what now?"

"I don't know." Carter looked around carefully, trying to find any leads that would take them to the right path; there was none, though.

"Oh, marvelous. So we ran all the way here for nothing?"

"No," said a different voice, coming from behind them. "You ain't here for nothing. You're here because I wanted you here, of course."

And there was the kid of the teddy bear pajamas, grinning delightfully at them.

"I can't believe this was a trap! How wonderful. So, are you some sort of _shabti_, kid? Or perhaps you're a monster?"

"I'm none of these, _kid_." His eyes flashed with anger and Sadie thought that he would soon run and call his mother. But then she blinked and everything changed. In the place where the boy had been standing, there was now a man, tall and lean, with hair as dark as night and a cocky smile that made her want to punch his face. "My name is Dolus, darling, and my job here is done. So farewell – and a good voyage."

At that, a deep sonorous rumble came from the underground, as if the earth beneath them was the belly of a very _very_ hungry person. Before they could understand what had happened and how it had happened, they felt themselves sinking slowly. The ground, they realized, was already by their knees as if the soil of the Central Park had suddenly turned into quicksand.

"_What the-_" Sadie started saying, furiously, indignantly. But then she blinked again and the man was gone. She hesitated, not sure if she should believe her eyes. "_The son of a -_"

"You know, cursing him won't get us out of here. So _please _can you try helping me to find a way out of this?" He was checking his leather purse. The sand was already by his waist and was swallowing them faster each second that passed. "Don't you know any hieroglyph of 'taking people out of quicksand' or anything like that?"

"No, I don't Carter. But I've got something else." Sadie smiled, taking her wand as she tried to remember the exact words.

She never had time to say them, though. Before she could, the sand they had been immersing to opened itself in a vortex, dragging them down in a speed that rivaled the portals. Sadie felt herself swirling, the world around her disappearing in shades of brown and burnt yellow. Then the dragging stopped and she just fell for a long time, like Alice in wonderland, in the tunnel of the rabbit.

When she hit the ground, the first impression she had was that she'd fallen in a place where there was nothing but darkness. She was surrounded by this Nothing, immersed in it – and the feeling that followed was of desolation, of loneliness and despair. That was until Carter started whining and grumbling to himself. Then the whole nothingness feelings evaporated and she just thought: _Oh, joy._

* * *

_Review? Please? :)_

_Oh, and btw, I'd forgotten to do the disclaimer thing on the other chapters, but PJO and the Kane Chronicles are Rick Riordan's. Obviously._


	7. Chapter 7

**\\Greek**

At first, all he could see was darkness. He was used to the shadows, though, since he spent a lot of time in his father's domains, and you couldn't say that light was exactly abundant there. Soon enough the contours of things became visible and he got up quietly, listening to the grumbles of the girl and the faint whining and mourning that came with the soft chilly draft.

"What is this? Where are we? What _happened_?" Nico could hear her voice tremble. He saw her dark silhouette, sitting on the ground, groping blindly as she moved her head, trying to see something, _anything._

"It's alright, Ana, I'm here." He crouched next to her, holding her hand reassuringly at the same time he analyzed the surroundings.

His first impression was of a cave – there were rough walls forming an arc, stones laid on the ground, looking untouched for the last millennium or so, and the pungent smell of dampness, of abandon and loneliness. As far as he could see, there were only two paths they could take – one that would take them to the darkness and the one that would lead them to the light, for there _was_ light, though it was so dim that he wasn't surprised Ana still couldn't see anything around her.

"Nico… What is this place?" she asked quietly. Her hand grabbed his tightly, desperately. "What happened? Why are we here?"

"We're in the Underworld, Ana." He could almost feel her eyes widening in the dark as she processed the information. Nico got up abruptly then, impatient of being in the same place for that long. Besides, he didn't feel like telling her he had barely any idea of what was going on… at least, not there in the middle of nowhere. "C'mon, get up. Let's see if we can discover where _exactly_ we are."

"You mean _you'll see_ while I follow you blindly." She retorted with a somewhat fake annoyed tone as she got up. Her voice was still trembling a bit, but she didn't sound as scared as before. "You know, I still don't trust you entirely. For all _I know_, you could have trapped us both down here."

Nico smiled as he guided her to the light.

"Well, it's not like you have much choice."

Ana snorted not very convincingly.

"I bet you use that a lot as an excuse." Then she exclaimed, with obvious delight and relief. "I can see you! I can…" she muted as she observed her surroundings getting clearer and clearer, until she could see the rocks and the stone walls and the stalactites and stalagmites. She let go of Nico's hand, half embarrassed and half glad. Then she looked back - and that was a mistake. The darkness behind her was deep and dense, looking impenetrable, and made Ana feel sick and claustrophobic.

"I don't wanna come back there." She muttered with her fists closed and her expression somber.

"Are you afraid of the dark?" he frowned.

"No! I'm not… I mean… It's just that I think it's…" she gulped. "It kinda looks… dangerous. Down there. You know."

"It's alright to be afraid of the dark, y'know. Most people _should _be afraid of the dark, anyway." He shrugged. "But it will depend on just about everything. I mean, if we have to get back there or not." Nico glanced at her, and she could see his eyes were stern and dark. "It depends on what you will tell me and what you won't. It depends on your intentions and where exactly we are. It depends on where we are going next, and… well, if we actually have any choice about that." His voice tensed slightly at this.

Ana said nothing for some moments.

"I'm _not _afraid of the dark, ok?" was all she added in a reproachful tone before she silenced again. Still, when they kept on walking she glanced behind nervously from time to time, as if expecting to see something coming from the deep tunnel.

Their path got larger and clearer. Ana could hear now the howls and the mourning that came with the draft – and despite everything, she felt more comfortable hearing them. She could see now the end of the cave and she felt disappointed to see that it culminated into another sort of cave, except this one was _huge_. She wanted to see the daylight again, even though she knew she couldn't – not yet.

They got to a cliff, from which they could see large fields glimmering and flickering in anxious agitation. Beyond that there was something that might have been a stone box or a miniature pavilion and, to the right, a dark castle the size of Ana's little finger could be seen as the center of all that huge underground reign. Ana imagined that it would have looked more imposing and impressive if she'd been nearer. And yet, for some reason the thought alone of going there made her feel uncomfortable and even a little bit scared. Not that she would ever admit it to Nico – or to anyone else, at any rate.

Further away they couldn't see much, for the shadows obscured their vision. Every now and then there was some explosion of red light on the horizon, though it was smooth and could be mistaken as an illusion.

"So this is the Underworld."

"Yeah… Welcome to my home, I guess." Nico hesitated, waiting for her reaction, but as she only frowned, he added: "We need to talk. And I guess it would be nice if you started by telling me who you are, where you're from, why you are here, who is that woman and _why in Hades_ you protect monsters."

Ana stood silent for some moments, still observing her surroundings carefully. Then with no warning she sat down with her legs crossed, grabbing his sleeve so that he would imitate her.

"Fine. My name is Ana Yawara and I am _Brazilian, _notMexican. I am direct descendant of the man called Marangatu, which means I am Guarani by blood." She observed Nico gravely as she talked, her yellow-green eyes looking sharp and strangely feline. "I assume, once you spoke of Hades, that you are Greek. I have to admit that I didn't know until now that our gods weren't the only ones… " She spoke slowly all the time, as if picking carefully her words so that she would not make any mistakes. "…but still that doesn't surprise me. Not really. What surprises me is that you don't look surprised either."

Nico shrugged, but said nothing. It was _her _turn to give answers, anyway. Ana seemed to understand it, but it was clear she did not like it one bit.

"Anyway… like you, we have our own gods. And these gods… Well, this is complicated. They kind of live in two different dimensions at the same time." She looked at Nico as if expecting him to burst into laughter at any minute. As he didn't, she continued. "They can live here with us and they live in the Land with no Evil. It's like the Christian version of paradise, except it can be reached by the living, too. The thing is, we don't always find them when we want or need. But there are people who despite not being able yet of going there, they can communicate to the other side. These people are the _karaí_, and they are considered spiritual guides – and they are the strongest among us. And that woman… the woman I'm looking for… she's one of them."

"But if she is one of the strongest among you… then how do you expect to save her if she can't even save herself?"

Ana bit her lower lip, her eyes showing anger and uncertainty at the same time.

"I don't know. But it's not like I have much choice, right? I can't just leave her there. Especially now that I'm already here."

"But why then didn't you ask for help? From the other _cry_ people or whatever it is that they're called."

"That wouldn't work." She made a face. "They wouldn't come all the way here to this land of _juruas_."

"Land of_ what_?"

"Nevermind."

Nico frowned, not really enjoying the way she'd said it. If anyone asked, he'd say it definitely sounded like an insult.

"And what about-" he started, but interrupted himself, raising his head like a hunting dog who finally caught the scent of his prey. He stood for some moments like that, perfectly still.

"What is i-"

"_Shhhhh_." He looked back to where they had come from, as if expecting to see something from the distance. After some moments, he turned to Ana, his eyes careful and his hand already in the sheath of the sword. "Can't you hear it?"

"Hear what?" she replied with annoyance in her voice. But then she heard it – coming with the drift, there was more than just the mourning and the whining she'd already gotten used to; there was the hint of voices and the traces of clashing metal coming from inside the dark, dark tunnel.

Nico jumped to his feet, his senses sharp and his body visibly tensed.

"What do you think you are doing?"

"I'm coming in. To see what's going on there."

"Don't be ridiculous!" she got up too, though with absolutely no intention of leaving the place. "This is how people get killed in horror movies! 'Oh, let's see what's going on', they say. And then BUM comes a hammer or whatever and chops them into pieces."

"What makes you think we are in a horror movie?" he frowned. Ana opened her mouth to reply, but the sounds they'd heard before were closer now and they were definitely from a battle – and before she could think of anything else, Nico said "Stay here", and left.

Ana stood still for some moments, frozen with fear. _And I _will _stay, thank you very much_, she thought._ I'm not the one who will be chopped into pieces. Especially not in that dark horrible tunnel we came from. Oh, no._

But there was something itchy about the whole thing. For Ana didn't like being told what to do. You know that kind of person who jumps from a building just because someone _ordered_ not to do so? She was that kind of person. So when Nico told her to stay, she debated inside intensely, faced her fear of that dark tunnel the best way that she could and looked for something in her purse that might help her with the thick darkness.

That done, she left.

* * *

_A/N:_

_First of all, I'm so sorry it took me so long to update. I lost all inspiration :P But anyway, now I'm back and with any luck the next chapter won't take sooo long to be updated._

_I would also like to thank everyone who reviewed so far, and especially -I'mDifferent-GetOverIt and -Shall be lifted Nevermore, who did review almost every chapter._

_I really hope you enjoyed this chapter :)_

_(Also, I don't own PJO or KC, but you all know that, right?)_


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